The Spiral Professional Growth

Becoming a specialist designer often implies progressing along a linear trajectory—assuming progress occurs at all. Take, for example, a 3D designer: talented, self-taught, and diligent (as most 3D specialists tend to be). To become proficient, requires extensive mileage or hands-on experience. Thus, the early years of a designer’s career are characterized by technical mastery gained from project to project. With the natural progression of this growth confidence scales, speed increases, and skills sharpen. Challenges, however, tend to surface a few years in, typically when the designer reaches mid-level or senior status.

The Erosion of Core Design Skills Over Time

Let’s dive into a specific use case and follow the career journey of a 3D Designer. In the early stages of the 3D designer’s career, accumulating experience and achieving technical mastery are the primary objectives. Over time, however, the designer’s core design skills, this broad (and somewhat raw) skillset he graduated with from design school. tend to erode. Consider a 3D designer who began their career in 2016, a time when websites were being designed using Photoshop, and is focused on honing 3D skills using tools such as 3D Studio. By the time their peers transitioned to Sketch, this designer had already spent 3-4 years immersed in 3D work. Fast forward to 2022, now this professional is a seasoned 3D designer. But at the same time, their former classmates are now proficient in Figma, the industry’s most popular tool.

Our 3D designer suddenly realizes that to regain “design proficiency,” they must learn Figma, master responsive design, and acquire knowledge of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. This happens even before delving into emerging trends, libraries, and tools.

Though this individual’s linear advancement in 3D design is evident, their broader design knowledge has waned, and their passion is at risk of fading. Performing similar tasks with similar techniques for five years might work well enough, but what happens after 20 years? At some point, the designer faces a critical decision: either bridge the knowledge gaps and expand into other design domains, or remain exclusively focused on 3D. Yet, to succeed in either direction, they must be exceptionally talented; they need to be one of those top-tier specialists who are, as we know, few and far between.

In contrast, generalists follow what I like to think of as a spiral growth path rather than a linear one. Reaching mid or senior-level status as a generalist may take longer since their projects demand diverse skill sets and perspectives. True development requires immersing themselves in various facets of design, challenging the principles of each, and continuously evolving.

Consider a web designer at an agency— one that handles a broad range of tasks, from branding to client gifts, portfolio design, social media assets, and, of course, web design. Early in their career, this designer supports the team by creating portfolio visuals, job ads, presentation decks, or mobile versions of websites already designed for desktop.  This point in the designer's career represents the first loop in the spiral trajectory of their professional development.
Let’s continue.

After a year or two, they become a full-fledged team member, handling research, small branding tasks, and eventually entire web design projects. Initially, these projects may be modest—certainly not involving complex systems or applications. But in a quality agency that values generalists, they are comprehensive A--Z projects. The designer conducts user research, interviews the client, benchmarks competitors, and delves into analytics of the client’s existing website. They define the site’s architecture, tackle typography (sometimes in multiple languages), and ensure responsiveness and UI constraints are met—all while considering SEO and accessibility.

Content creation becomes part of their role: whether it’s arranging a photo shoot for headshots, producing imagery, or even leveraging generative AI tools. They also design a narrative-driven presentation outlining the project’s goals, challenges, solutions, and design iterations. To demonstrate design behavior, they might create GIFs or scroll animations, showcase menu interactions, and illustrate responsiveness. Naturally, they present their work to the client with enthusiasm, articulating their rationale, addressing questions, and tailoring explanations for non-designers. Though this process is far from complete, it marks the end of a second spiral of their path.

Did this designer exclusively work on web design? Let’s examine the skills they engaged with during the project:

Research:

• Needs analysis
• Inspiration research
• Data analysis and goal refinement
• Hierarchy and content strategy

Design:

• Typography
• Layout
• UI design
• Presentation design
• Animation
• Image creation and art direction
• Gen AI outputs
• Style guide assembly

Soft Skills:

• Storytelling
• Presentation
• Adaptability in communication

So, did they merely execute web design, or did they, in fact, engage in multi-faceted design? By now, you know what my answer is. 

Even in a generalist-friendly agency, it’s possible that strategists handle significant portions of the research, or that managers present the final deliverables. Yet, our designer has practiced and applied a wide array of distinct design skills throughout the project.

In  specialist-oriented agencies or teams, such as many design teams in the tech industry over the past decade, the breakdown might look something like this:

Research:

• Analysis: Planner/Account Manager
• Inspiration research: Art Director/Designer
• Data analysis and goal refinement: Planner/Project Manager/UX
• Hierarchy and content strategy: UX

Design:

• Typography: Designer
• Layout: UX + Web Designer
• UI design: UX
• Presentation design: Designer
• Animation: Motion Designer
• Image creation/Art direction: Illustrator/3D Artist
• Generative AI: Prompt Engineer
• Style guide assembly: Web Designer

Soft Skills:

• Storytelling: Copywriter/Planner
• Presentation: Account Manager
• Communication: Account Manager/Project Manager

And remember, we’re still talking about a small website project, having only covered about 30% of its lifecycle by the time we reach the first client presentation.

Would the specialist approach yield a better result? Maybe. Maybe not.

Is this route more efficient? Definitely not.

Does it foster professional growth? Yes—but primarily within confined, linear boundaries. Such growth often lacks lateral development opportunities and may limit soft skill acquisition.

For nearly a decade, the design world favored the specialist model. Today, as the landscape evolves, only the very best specialists in their respective fields will continue to thrive and deliver extraordinary value. Generalists, meanwhile, are increasingly critical for organizations seeking adaptability and holistic problem-solving.

Professional growth is a universal aspiration—it ranks among the top three reasons employees choose a workplace. Employers, too, benefit from nurturing talent, viewing recruitment as a long-term investment. When considering a designer’s growth in terms of skill refinement rather than vertical advancement, the generalist approach offers a broader spectrum of opportunities. It enhances a designer’s chances of engaging in diverse projects, maintains their curiosity, and provides varied career pathways.

Specialists, on the other hand, must remain autodidacts, driven by passion, and excelling in their niche to stay relevant. For career-oriented individuals, transitioning from specialist to generalist requires bridging significant knowledge gaps—learning new tools, trends, and conventions.
A generalist, evolving through a more spiral trajectory, can deepen expertise in a specific practice area whenever they encounter one that truly resonates. This approach involves minimal knowledge erosion and maximizes depth of mastery, enabling them to potentially become a top-tier expert in that domain.

Spiral growth, therefore, not only broadens horizons, but also offers the option for focused specialization when the time is right.